Dodge ‘Year of the Farmer’ comes to life in photo collection

The photographs that helped bring Paul Harvey’s “So God Made a Farmer” essay to life in the Dodge Ram Super Bowl commercial are part of a 300-page photographic essay available from the Ram Truck brand.

The comprehensive collection of agriculture and farming photography includes the images used by Dodge in its “Farmer” Super Bowl commercial. ‘The Farmer in All of Us: An American Portrait’ is a 300-page coffee table book with images taken by 10 world-class photographers as they traveled across America’s heartland over the course of three weeks. The book is published by National Geographic.

The project used Paul Harvey’s speech as inspiration to capture the essence of the farmer, while stirring the strong emotions of the next generation of America’s farmers.

Like the Super Bowl commercial, Dodge is sharing the attention it gains through the project to benefit National FFA Organization. A portion of every sale benefits the ‘Give the Gift of Blue’ program with the Ram Truck brand contributing at least $25,000. The “Give the Gift of Blue” program donates traditional FFA blue corduroy jackets to members who would not otherwise be able to own one.

Ram announced it would donate up to $1 million to FFA for views of the commercial on its website. The goal was accomplished in less than a week and a check was presented to the organization at its annual convention in October.

“Supporting farmers isn’t just about those who till the soil, it’s about reminding America who we are and where our greatness comes from,” said Olivier Francois, Chief Marketing Officer, Chrysler Group, LLC. “This book truly brings the “Farmer” story to life, and continues to give back in support of the amazing students of the FFA who embody this spirit every day.”

The book of more than 240 photos includes a foreword by Paul Harvey, Jr. and personal anecdotes from the 10 photographers.

“It is so exciting to see a collection of these stunning images together in one book. ‘The Farmer in All of Us’ truly represents the soul of the American farmer,” said Clay Sapp, President of the National FFA Organization. “We are grateful to Ram for supporting the ‘Give the Gift of Blue’ program and helping ensure each member of the FFA has the ability to own their own blue corduroy jacket.”